Bushfire safety and preparing your property

In the City of Armadale, there are areas that are especially prone to bushfires, particularly near bushland and grasslands. By preparing your property with firebreaks and maintaining an asset protection zone, you can significantly reduce the spread and impact of fires, while also helping emergency services to respond more effectively. 

Following the City Firebreak and Hazard Reduction Notice is not just a safety measure but a legal requirement to avoid fines and penalties.

Firefighters will be too busy fighting fires on the frontline to defend your home and property, so it is your responsibility to be prepared. Watch this video on preparing your home and download, print and complete the Property Preparation Checklist to give your home and property the best possible chance of surviving a bushfire. 

Fuel types

Forest fuels are divided into two classes; Fine or Heavy. Fine fuels are 5mm or less in diameter such as grasses and small twigs, Heavy (or coarse) fuels are 6mm or greater in diameter and include branches, logs and stumps.

Fine fuels will burn with high intensity and with a fast rate of spread. Build-up of fine fuels contributes the most to the overall fire risk. Heavy fuels do affect fire behaviour, but their impact is significantly less than of fine fuels. Heavy fuels are excluded when measuring fuel loads. They also provide important habitat for fauna.

Forest fuels are found in four different layers:

• Canopy;

• Bark;

• Elevated fuel (shrubs up to 2m); and

• Surface litter (leaf litter).
  

Fuel load calculations measure the surface litter and elevated fuels, which are mainly fine fuels, to determine the amount of fuel that is readily available in a fire. Regular fuel load assessments are encouraged to monitor and maintain fuel loads at an appropriate level.

How to calculate fuel loads on your property

1. Divide your property into different sections (cells) based on the vegetation variation across your property. 

2. Take three (3) samples in each cell to establish an average fuel load for each cell.

3. Make a small hole in the leaf litter and remove any coarse material.

4. Measure the depth of the leaf litter. This will be used in table A - litter weight

5. Measure the depth of scrub base. This will be used in table B - scrub weight

6. Look at your scrub base and determine if it is - Sparse (easy to pick any path through) Medium (can pick a path through) or Dense (difficult to walk through). This will be used in table B - scrub weight

Fuel Load Tables

Fuel load calculations

Total Indicative Fuel Load (TIFL) = Litter weight + (Scrub Weight x Scrub Flammability Factor)

For example, the first sample site within the cell has a leaf litter depth of 10mm (5.3 t/ha from table A), dense scrub with an average height of 0.9m (3.0t/ha from table B) and consists of no more than 20% dead materials (giving a scrub flammability factor of 2 from table C)

• Sample 1 TIFL = 5.3t/ha + (3.0t/ha x 2) = 11.3t/ha

• Sample 2 resulted in a TIFL of 5t/ha

• Sample 3 resulted in a TIFL of 14t/ha
   

The average for all three results gives the cell a TIFL of 10.1t/ha.

Over 90% of Western Australia is bushfire prone and bushfire can start at any time. Whether you live in a regional area, the suburbs or the inner city, everyone needs to be prepared.

Creating a bushfire plan can take just 15 minutes and is the best way to keep you and your household safe.

Visit My Bushfire Plan to help you decide if you will be safe and leave early or be prepared to stay and defend. 

When a bushfire is likely to impact your home, staying to defend it or preparing to shelter in place is extremely dangerous. You must be mentally and physically ready and have an extensive emergency kit plus an independent supply of power and water to increase your chances of survival.

If you don’t know that you could handle the life-threatening situation and keep your family safe, then your best option is to evacuate early and have an emergency evacuation kit.

You should prepare your kit before the bushfire season and keep it in an accessible spot that everyone knows about.

Download a checklist on preparing your emergency kit here.

When preparing your family and property for natural disasters, you also need to consider your pets and livestock.

Ensure that your pets are properly identified with a name tag or microchip or that you have a recent photo of them with you, and that stock registers for your livestock are current.

Find out more about pet and livestock welfare in an emergency by visiting Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.

Understanding emergency alerts and warnings is crucial for staying safe and helps you take swift and appropriate actions during a crisis. 

For detailed information visit the Australian Warning System.